Center of Interest
Ovide Decroly was born at the end of 19th century. He is well a know pedagogue. Decroly has influenced the pedagogy around “Escola nova”. He believes that the purpose of the school is to help students be ready for the world, whatever the future holds. Education it is about allowing children to gain experiences, to learn to live in new and better ways, to take charge of their future, to shape it and deal with its challenges. Decroly refused traditional education, he proposed an education connected with the primary needs of the child and their natural interests. He promoted Center of Interest, promoting activities based on observation, small research, exploration of the environment, using the associations within the space, time, phenomena, objects, facts and people.
He give us some examples to implement in the school:
-We have to take the students to the forest, farms and fields around the school. Immersion in real nature as often as possible through the crops, breeding animals, botanic trips, zoological trips and so on.
-We have to show to the children the workshops around our area, letting them practise whenever it is possible different profession and crafts such as a carpentry, shoemaking, dressmaking, baking…
-We have to show the social rules of society, municipal organisation and practise them, visit the Mayor or the city council, we can also implement some of the rules in the class, given the students duties and responsibilities.
Decroly thinks that schools should work as a restaurant. The teacher should offer different meals to the students, having different quantities and a wide range of different ingredients to nurture the inquisitive desire to learn from the children. This is a good way to personalise education and follow the children’s interests.
Ovide Decroly was born at the end of 19th century. He is well a know pedagogue. Decroly has influenced the pedagogy around “Escola nova”. He believes that the purpose of the school is to help students be ready for the world, whatever the future holds. Education it is about allowing children to gain experiences, to learn to live in new and better ways, to take charge of their future, to shape it and deal with its challenges. Decroly refused traditional education, he proposed an education connected with the primary needs of the child and their natural interests. He promoted Center of Interest, promoting activities based on observation, small research, exploration of the environment, using the associations within the space, time, phenomena, objects, facts and people.
He give us some examples to implement in the school:
-We have to take the students to the forest, farms and fields around the school. Immersion in real nature as often as possible through the crops, breeding animals, botanic trips, zoological trips and so on.
-We have to show to the children the workshops around our area, letting them practise whenever it is possible different profession and crafts such as a carpentry, shoemaking, dressmaking, baking…
-We have to show the social rules of society, municipal organisation and practise them, visit the Mayor or the city council, we can also implement some of the rules in the class, given the students duties and responsibilities.
Decroly thinks that schools should work as a restaurant. The teacher should offer different meals to the students, having different quantities and a wide range of different ingredients to nurture the inquisitive desire to learn from the children. This is a good way to personalise education and follow the children’s interests.
